


Moonstone

by HangesDisguise



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - Politics, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Alternate Universe - War, Angst, Badass Reader, Dominant Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Forbidden Love, Guerrilla Warfare, Intense, It'll probably get kinky later, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader-Insert, Revolution, Sex, Slow Burn, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:21:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21877303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HangesDisguise/pseuds/HangesDisguise
Summary: After a stroke of terrible luck, you're taken by an enemy nation as a prisoner of war. Your fate? Either to be killed off, or used to negotiate your kingdom's surrender.Of course, that is until you're freed by a group of mysterious combatants who are dead-set on keeping you safe. Though for what reason, you're not very sure.Now, off on an unfamiliar terrain, you're forced to latch onto a man who you can't seem to figure out. But he's the only thing keeping you alive.
Relationships: Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/Original Female Character(s), Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/Reader, Levi/Reader
Comments: 7
Kudos: 39





	Moonstone

Your gaze doesn’t falter as you stare blankly at the stone walls that surround you. You’re not sure why, but you feel as though if you stop watching them, they will close in on you until you are crushed.

Though, there are worse ways to go out. In fact, you’ve imagined as much as twenty different ways that you might die in the near future. All of them worse than the last. Beheading. Slit throat. Insides carved out. Limbs ripped off. The list goes on and on. You feel a shudder run down your spine, but no tears fall. You have none left, eyes dried out. Not that crying would ever help you here, anyways.

You are a prisoner of war after all. No one cares for the sobs of a captive.

It’s been a couple days that you’ve been locked up. You, Princess Luna Reader of the Kingdom of Elvarys, were now a hostage, helpless at the hands of the enemy nation of Avellin. Your fate out of your control.

“My life is uncertain.” You whisper quietly, “This truth is inescapable.”

And it was silly really. Your capture was a stroke of bad luck. It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t supposed to happen. You had been visiting a new sun shrine in a nearby village to meditate with the locals. Nature was the force by which your nation lived by. Connecting with the earth, worshipping the skies and everything the world blessed you with. You had always been eager to further understand the world you live in.

Unfortunately, Avellinian forces had been planning to raid the shrine, destroy it to send a message. But when they came upon you, crown and all, they did not hesitate to snatch you up as their prize. And you were forced to watch the shrine burn down, your subjects burning down with it, before being dragged away to the Avellin capital, and tossed in their castle’s dungeon. As though you were a criminal. 

But you know better than that. With all of your soul, you know that the Kingdom of Avellin is a kingdom of monsters. A colonial superpower hellbent on conquering Elvarys and using it for its rich land and plentiful resources. And you are meant as a bargaining chip to bring your nation to surrender. It wouldn’t be the first time Avellin has used its military powers to take down other kingdoms. They strive to become an all-powerful empire. If they had their way, their rule would be the law of the world.

And anyone who opposed would be rid of.

_ They’ve called us barbaric for our way of life, our indifference towards industrialization. Convinced their people that we are savages who need direction. Like we are ignorant fools. _ Your take a breath.  _ And have used that to justify the war they’ve waged on us for two years. But they only want to turn us into another colony of theirs to use and exploit until our lands are barren and our people are no more. _

Your heart aches for a moment, and your gaze flickers down to the bright yellow gown that still adorns your body. Yellow. The color of the sun. The color of life. You’ve always liked yellow, and since you’ve been here, it’s been one source of comfort for you. Like it was emitting a warm light that connected you to your identity during a time that you worried that you may lose whoever you are to the isolation and despair you’ve been handed.

But loneliness still pricks at you. It’s sting is second only to the helplessness you feel.

You hear the click of your door and jolt upright, immediately feeling somewhat vulnerable and apprehensive of what was to come. Your hands ball into fists even though you know you wouldn’t be able to fight anyone off. Though, if it came down to it, you know you’d try anyways. The royal daughter of Elvarys would surely never keel over and accept defeat without so much as trying. And you watch with wary eyes as the door slowly opens. 

In comes a man, a guard no less, dressed in that same drab gray and red. But in his hands was a tray of food which struck you as odd. Not because you weren’t being fed, but because the scraps had usually been tossed in through a rectangular hole in the door. Splattered on the dirty ground for you to pick up and dust off. Some of the food had even been half eaten before she got to it.

But this man is different than the guard you remember. He is rather short, you’re quick to note, though that didn’t seem to make him any less intimidating as he just stares at you with intense, pale blue eyes that are narrowed in, as if he’s analyzing you. Devouring you in his stare. You can’t even so much as move while those orbs linger on you. 

And then, he places the tray of food on the ground.

“Eat.” He orders plainly, low voice spilling from his lips. And then he walks away, leaving you to recover from  _ whatever that was _ all alone. 

It was the first time anyone had spoken to you since you were locked up. And, while it wasn’t much, it hadn’t a trace of malice woven in. You had worried about being harassed or worse by the guards here, but this man seems to have no interest in tormenting you.

And as you finally look towards the tray on the floor, it seems he had no interest in eating your food, either. Bread and fruit, all intact, wait to be consumed and your stomach reminds you of its emptiness with a hardy growl. You quickly amble over to it, grabbing at everything with your bare hands because manners be damned. You aren’t sure when you’ll be given any more sustenance, so you are sure to enjoy this.

And you don’t miss the fact that there seems to be a much larger portion than usual.

_ Perhaps, my family has agreed to start negotiations, so the Avellians are taking care to not have me get too weak. _

You aren’t sure if you’re happy about that possibility. A part of you would very much rather die than hand over Elvarys to these demons. But you don’t currently have any power to object. And if you allow yourself to wallow any more than you have been, you’re sure your sadness will drown you where you sit. 

All you can do is wait.

\----

Nighttime creeps up on you. Or at least, you believe it’s nighttime. You’re not quite sure. Unfortunately, the Avellians didn’t feel it necessary to bestow upon you a clock. And, given the fact that you are in an underground dungeon, there was no window for you to see the sky. You base your assumptions on your tiredness, relying on your body’s routine to let you know when it’s time to sleep.

You’ve been pacing for a while, but waltz over to the rigid bed nestled in the corner. It’s not comfortable by any means, but it’s better than the hard floor. And you’re certain that your mind will be too preoccupied to focus on something as trivial as back pain.

“No matter what happens, my soul belongs to the earth. It will return in peace, the same way it came in peace.” You murmur words of comfort, though it doesn’t do much to change the fact that you long to be home. Long to be surrounded by everyone you love who loves you, too.

But you guess that, if you have to die for your nation, at least you will die with the knowledge that your soul will live on.

Time passes as you try your best to fall asleep, tossing and turning. Keeping your eyes closed. Trying to steady your breathing. Counting backwards from one-hundred. But it seems you’ll be deprived of rest for a long while, your thoughts still racing, swirling around in your skull like an unforgiving tornado. 

It is ironic really. While the war rages outside, there is one in your head that was just as relentless.

It’s somewhere between your eternal moments that you hear light ruckus outside of your room. Footsteps are rushing about and whispers faintly make their way inside to you, like gusts of wind. But you can’t make out what they’re saying. Though you try, now motivated by a mix of curiosity and worry. Things have been rather quiet, especially in the nights. You listen intently, focused on figuring out what the commotion could be about.

It’s clear that whatever’s going, the perpetrators are making an effort to be as quiet as possible. And you have a hunch that it’s not to avoid waking you out of politeness.

Soon, you hear that same click at your door, and your heart drops down to your stomach. The worst begins to run through your mind. Maybe Avellinian soldiers are here to kill you. Or worse, maybe your parents have agreed to surrender your kingdom in exchange for your safe return. Either way, some death seems inevitable no matter which option is true. And so does your suffering. 

As the creak of the door reached your ears, you sit up as a reflex, arms wrapping around your chest as if that could shield you from whatever fate you’re meant for. 

And as you anticipated, a guard walks in. The same one as before, eyes piercing you like a knife. And he struts towards you quickly and with purpose, your breath getting lodged in your throat. You can do nothing but stare back in horror. Waiting for him to grab you, and tell you whichever terrible news he has. 

But it doesn’t happen. Instead, he leans forward until his face is a mere centimeters away from yours and places one finger over your lips to hush any impending screams you might have held. You consider swatting it away, but you’re, once again, paralyzed by his gaze. Like blue electricity. He holds control. And he has not even threatened you, yet. In fact, he hasn’t done anything but quieted you. 

“Come, now.” He mumbles firmly, “You need to follow me without hesitation or we all may die.”

That catches your attention, and you feel your autonomy coming back to you enough for you to raise your brow at him and shake your head.

“Why would I do such a thing? You’re an Avellinian guard.” You counter, voice raising enough that it triggers a scowl on his chiseled face and he quickly makes a move to cover your mouth with his hand.

“Don’t be an idiot, princess.” He grunts, “If I were an Avellinian guard, don’t you think I would have grabbed you by your precious hair and dragged you away?”

He makes a good point, and when he feels that you’ve no loud protests left, he drops his hand.

“If you stay, you will either die a damn martyr, or your kingdom will surrender to save your ass.” He continues, his stare never leaving you, “Do you want to be a shitty bargaining chip for Avellin?”

You shake your head slowly. Perhaps he’s right. You don’t have much to lose at this point. There’s no happy ending for you if you remain in this dungeon. But could you trust him? You have no doubt that this is the same guard from earlier who brought you food. So, either he’s a liar trying to lure you into a false sense of security or he’s a traitor to his own country. You hold a bit of hope that it’s the latter, but still remain wary of his motives.

“Get up. Now. We don’t have time.” He orders again firmly, though you swear you hear a tinge of annoyance.

You oblige, throwing your legs over the edge of the bed and then pushing forward until you were flat on your feet. You notice how he’s scanning you in the same fashion as earlier, though he makes no secret of it as his gaze moves up and down your body, from your head down to your feet, scrutinizingly. You fight off a blush that threatens to creep up on your face at such an act, feeling like an innocent little girl despite knowing that he was likely not checking you out.

“We’ll get you better clothes and shoes later on.” He notes, then grabs your wrist tightly and tugs for you follow along.

“Wait.” You whisper, and when he pauses you continue, “Shouldn’t I know who you are if I’m going to go with you?”

He ponders such a request, blinking once, then twice.

“Levi.” He says finally, “Captain Levi.”

“Luna.” You reciprocate the greeting, “Princess Luna.”

You see him raise his brows at that, most likely because he already knows who you are since he came to rescue you. But you couldn’t help but feel more comfortable having an official introduction before he hauls you away to who knows where.

“No more shitty questions.” He asserts roughly, tugging again at you, “We leave now.”

And with that, this mysterious Captain Levi pulls you out of your prison, and you see others in traditional guard attire waiting for him down the hall. They don’t look threatening, so you relax a bit, realizing that these must be his companions. Though, you don’t appreciate every single one of them giving you the same once over as though they’re judging you for wearing such inconvenient clothing. How were you supposed to know you’d be in this predicament when you put it on a few days ago?

“The real Avellinian guards have been taken care of.” One man asserts, icy eyes now focusing on Levi, “We’ve stashed the bodies in the empty cells. So, we’re all set to move out.”

You briefly wonder if by  _ taken care of _ , they mean killed. But you force the thought down in favor of not freaking yourself out. Murder shouldn’t shock you, anymore. Not in times like this.

“Alright, Erwin. Who’s going first?” Levi asks, hand dropping from your wrist.

“You’ll go with the princess. Take the western trail once you’re out.” Erwin declars, voice deep and booming, like thunder. “We’ll stay behind and make sure no enemy forces follow. It’s safer to travel in small groups. You’re less likely to get spotted.”

“Then, have Hange take her.” Levi’s voice hold mild discontent. You would be offended at that if you still weren’t utterly confused about this whole situation.

Erwin’s thick eyebrows furrow together, a defining feature on his all-around striking appearance. You gather that he’s the one in charge, despite Levi having the title of captain. Though, despite coming off as a more diplomatic presence, you still sense a ruthlessness in the blonde that makes you wonder how the shorter man could so easily protest an order. Then again, the captain has his own threatening disposition that has you questioning who would really be more dangerous.

“Hange is taking the eastern trail with Moblit. I will be going through the mountains with Mike. You are going first with the princess. That is the plan, Levi.” 

You had never realized how much force could exist behind a simple order until now. He hadn’t even said any threat explicitly, and yet you find yourself shivering. 

“Fine. But don’t think for a damn second that I won’t get you back for putting me on babysitting duty.” 

You can see Levi roll his eyes from your peripheral, indicating that he doesn’t hold the same fear of Erwin that you currently do. But, if you’re honest, you hold a bit of fear of both men. So much so, that you completely forgot the fact that there are three others standing beside the apparent leader.

You quickly assume that they are the same Hange, Moblit and Mike that had just been mentioned.

“Ah. Don’t worry, Princess Luna.” One of them, a woman with her brown hair in a messy ponytail and goggles on her face, approaches you with a wide smile, “Captain Shorty isn’t  _ that _ bad. He’ll keep you safe, that’s for sure. We’re just taking different routes to throw off anyone who may try to follow. But we’ll all end up in the same place.”

You nod. “I understand.”

The woman looks like she’s ready to say something else, but she’s cut off just as her mouth opens.

“Oi, Hange. Back off from her.” Levi grunts, “If I’m taking her, then we’re leaving now.”

You suddenly feel a heavy pressure on your wrist once more as Levi wraps his strong hand around it. He tugs roughly, taking you down the hall, and you let out a gasp and look back towards everyone, still hopelessly confused as you’re dragged off.

“Levi will explain everything once it’s safe.” Erwin addresses you for the first time, and you notice that his gaze is softer towards you, “It’s too dangerous to divulge anything here. But trust that we are not your enemy, Princess Luna.”

You would have responded, but the captain yanks at you once more to pick up the pace, and you both turn a corner, everyone else disappearing from view. If you’re being honest, you wish it had been Hange who was taking you. But this isn’t the time to get picky. It’s either go with the flow or walk right back in that cell. Because there’s no way you could arrange an escape without them, whoever these people are. If they really managed to deal with other soldiers, they must be the real deal. 

He moves towards what appears to be a dead-end wall with a tapestry hanging from it, yanking it with one quick movement and never letting up on his grip on you. It falls to the ground. Though, you only see a continuation of the stone wall that makes up this entire dungeon area and you look at the captain curiously.

He peeks back at you, almost as if he knew you’d be confused, and you swear you see a glint of amusement in his eyes before he places his free hand on the wall, palm pressing into it. Then, he pushes forward and something begins to shift. He pushes again, and again. And suddenly, you see that there is a disguised door there.

You assumed this group would have an escape route, but you hadn’t expected it to be this elaborate.

He steps in, and pulls at you to follow until you, too, are inside this hidden passage, dimly lit by a few torches hung on the wall. It’s only then that he lets you go.

“Close the door, dumbass.” He orders as he grabs a torch. 

You do as your told, pushing the heavy door until it’s back into place.

“You don’t have to be rude, you know.” You insist, but he doesn’t respond. He just begins walking forward. You take it that he’s not exactly the social type, but you don’t have much of a choice than to trust him at this point. There isn’t any turning back now.

The passage is long and chilly, with no end in sight. Levi is speeding through it as you desperately try to keep up, lifting the bottom of your dress a bit to allow for better movement. But you don’t allow a complaint to slip from your mouth. Even when you almost trip over your own feet.

This definitely wasn’t the best outfit you could have been in.

“This passage… Do Avellin officials know about it?” You ask suddenly, breaking the silence that had encased you both. It clearly runs far, but something about it doesn’t seem like it was built by royal architects. Nor does it look like it’s been kept up well, with debris scattered everywhere. If you didn’t already feel dirty from days of not bathing, this would have surely grossed you out. 

He takes a moment before he answered, but you can hear him inhale sharply.

“No one knows about this. We’ve been infiltrating the Avellin castle as guards and other common workers for years. Once we mapped out where we wanted this to lead, we started working.” Levi’s tone was rather indifferent, as if he was reluctantly teaching a child something small and trivial. “It took a long ass time and a lot of tedious fucking planning, but we managed without getting caught a single time.”

“That’s rather amazing.” You murmur. “I’m assuming you aren’t going to tell me who you all are until we’re far away from the castle.”

“That’s correct.”

His response is dull, indicating that he’s lost all interest in speaking with you. Or that he never really had any. Either way, you retreat inside yourself to avoid pissing him off. You have a feeling ihs temper isn’t exactly the best controlled, and you’ve had a rough enough time the past few days to deal with that.

Well, and the fact that you have a temper yourself. And it doesn’t seem to be the best idea to trigger a bickering contest while escaping from enemy territory.

Still, after having been locked in what was pretty much solitary confinement for all that time, a decent conversation would have been nice. But beggars can’t be choosers in situations like these.

Unfortunately, it dawns on you that time passes incredibly slow when you’re basically running behind a grumpy man through a cold, dirty hallway. It feels like hours have passed, though it’s impossible to tell for sure. All you know is that your feet sting with each step you take, like stepping on needles.

Levi isn’t phased, though. The peeks you manage to take of his side profile, glowing warm by the fire, show no signs of fatigue. In fact, the only thing that seems to exist within him, besides an active hate for small talk, is pure determination. He breaks not a sweat as he hurries forward. A fighter indeed.

You don’t realize that you’ve pretty much glued your eyes to well-defined face, even speeding faster to get close, until you hear him clear his throat abruptly.

“Don’t you think you should be more focused on not falling over than on me?”

Well, that’s one way to embarrass you. And you feel a blush creep on your face as he takes a glance back at you with a raised brow. 

“I… I just can’t help but be curious about you.”

“That’s natural. But like Erwin said, I’ll explain more when we get out. You don’t have to gawk like you’re looking at a damn ghost.”

You frown a bit, “I’m not  _ gawking _ .”

You hear him grunt in response, but he doesn’t bother giving you an actual response until a few more minutes pass.

“We’re almost out.”

And when you see light peeking through in the distance, you let out a long sigh of relief. And a part of you even feels somewhat accomplished for managing to get through it. 

For the third time, he moves to hold your wrist and tugs you near him as you reach the end. 

“We don’t know what may be out there. Stay very close to me.” His voice is dangerously low and you fall silent by his side, any questions you may have fading away at such an order. As rude and unsociable as he may seem, you don’t feel any doubt towards his skill as a soldier, whatever kind he may be.

He presses his hand against the wall, and it opens just enough for him to peek his head out. You see him looking around for a bit with a sharp glare, and, when he’s satisfied with what he’s seen, he pushes the door open more and swiftly pulls you out with him.

The first thing you notice is the moon high in the sky, surrounded by a surplus of little stars. There’s a nice breeze out, and it cools down any moisture on your skin from the long walk. You’re not exactly sweating, but you’ve accumulated some droplets above your brow from trying to keep up with the captain. 

The next thing you notice is that you’re near a forest, which you assume is the end of the castle grounds. This passage seems to have gone far under the castle and let out through a large pavillion. Another secret door. These people were very thorough and skilled to have pulled this off without getting caught. You can’t help but admire that sort of dedication.

Just as you suspected, Levi starts pulling you towards the forest, though he’s constantly looking all around. Calm, but alert.

However, that changes quickly when the sound of voices catch up to him.

Guards. He has no doubt about it. And that calm morphes into something more focused, striking steely eyes lighting up instantly. He pulls at you to run with him, and you manage for a spell until your legs start giving up from the fatigue. And Levi takes note as you begin to slow down behind him, even with each harsh tug.

“Oi, come on.” He whispers so low you almost don’t hear it.

“S-Sorry, I just…” You trail off for a moment as he turns to face you, realization dawning on him as he scans your tired features and then lowers his gaze down to your little heels.

You hear a sigh escape from him, and, before you can react, he moves beside you, knees bent, and loops one arm right behind your thigh, the other arm snakes around your waist. With one swift motion, you’re off of the ground and in his hold.

That’s right, Levi is carrying you. And he takes off in a sprint before you can even protest at all, your own instincts pushing you to wrap your arms around his neck to steady yourself. He’s fast, almost impossibly so. And your hair whips behind you, strands no doubt tangling together. Your weight doesn’t even seem to phase him as he goes, face still stoic, not even breaking a sweat. When you reach the forest, he darts through until he finds a large tree with a wide trunk, and goes to hide behind it.

He doesn’t put you down, though. Merely stands there for a bit and steals peeks back towards the castle grounds. Looking and listening intently. You’re smart enough not to fight his hold for the time being, even if you are mildly embarrassed at the situation. You know it was out of necessity, and you even slightly grateful that he didn’t just try to drag you in.

There’s no way you could have gone that fast without falling over. 

When he finally concludes that you both had successfully slipped away without being noticed, he puts you down. Surprisingly gentle as he does.

“You’re tired.”

He’s not asking, but you nod anyways.

“And your feet hurt.”

Once again, it was more like an observation, but you still felt the need to confirm.

“Y-Yeah.”

You can see that’s visibly annoyed, but it doesn’t feel like it’s directly on you. As he looks down at your heels once more, his irritation seems more directed at the predicament. It’s not like you can take them off. Running through the forest with bare feet would no doubt lead to cuts and scrapes. And all it would take would be for you to step on something sharp, and then you’d pretty much be completely out of commission. 

“I don’t plan on carrying you the whole damn way... But we can move slow for now.” He announces, now staring deeply at you, “You’re gonna have to push through any pain until we put some more distance between us and the castle. Got that?”

In truth, you’re not sure how much more you can take, but you know better than to just give up now. 

“I’ll try.”

“You’ll do more than that, princess.” He clicks his tongue, “Now, let’s get going. We’ve seemed to go undetected for now, but we don’t know how long it’ll take before any shitty Avellinian guards realize you’re gone.”

“But Levi…”

“What now?”

“Won’t you tell me who you are?”

He starts walking at a surprisingly slow and considerate pace, and you actually manage to fall into step with him instead of lagging behind. You watch as he contemplates that request, taking another look around before his gaze flickers towards you.

He’s intense. Even when he only looks to you for a moment, you can still sense something wild lurking within him. And it makes you even more curious.

“Fine.” He breathes out, “I’ll tell you everything.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is my absolute first fic that I've ever published on this site, so I'm very excited! I've always liked writing in medieval settings, and I thought putting Levi as a mysterious soldier fit really well. Don't worry, though. We'll learn more about him and the gang as the story progresses.
> 
> Let me know if it's worth pursuing or if it's a total bust. If I decide to pursue it, it'll probably be a pretty long fic.
> 
> So, get ready for some painful slow burn that no doubt will erupt into intense, passionate desire. And potential kinky shit. We'll see if I can work that in.


End file.
